Finland - revisited
- pmh0606617
- May 19
- 4 min read
Julia and I have just returned from a 10-day trip to Finland, based in Kuusamo. Whilst on previous trips (and this was Julia's seventh visit and my eighth) we have spent at least half, or (on occasion) the whole holiday concentrating on Brown Bear photography, this time we only had one evening with Brown Bears. Our time was spent photographing the birds of the area, visiting the lakes around Kuusamo, and the forested areas of Iivara, Oulanka and Konttainen.
Logistics
We flew to Oulu via Helsinki with Finnair, with a tight connection is Helsinki, less than a hour between flights. We'd pre-hired a car (Toyota Yaris Cross Hybrid) from Enterprise at Oulu Airport and drove across to Kuusamo, picking up Julia's brother (who lives in Finland) enroute, a drive of around 3 hrs with a brief stop. We'd rented a three bedroom property in Kuusamo, (via Booking.com) and found this ample for our stay and about £450 for the 10 days! Most evenings we eat in, eating out at lunch-time or picking up provisions from a local store. Eating out wasn't too expensive - all three of us could lunch for less than £30.
Kuusamo Nature Photography
I had pre-booked several hide sessions with Kuusamo Nature Photography; a morning for Black Grouse (with a 2 am start at the hides), an overnight for Capercaillie and a morning on some wet grassland for Common Crane and Bean Goose. The hides all have heating and are more than adequate. The Capercaillie Hide is long enough for sleeping / low-level photography.
Our morning in the Common Crane and Bean Goose hide started at 4 am, as we were led to the hide and settled in. Not long after we were settled the first Common Crane arrived and fed on corn and fish that had been put down. During our five hours in the hide we saw at least four Common Crane. A dozen or more Whooper Swans also fed in front of the hide, mostly in pairs with the occasional noisy greetings between the mates. Two Taiga Bean Geese also visited, and up to 40 were seen flying over. Curlew, Lapwing and Ruff were also present and several Yellowhammer fed close to the hide.
An even earlier start was required for the Black Grouse hide, meeting the guide at 2 am, then a 10 minute drive to the hides located in an area used by lekking Black Grouse. Light was rather poor at the start, mainly due to the low cloud, but over a dozen Black Grouse were seen over the next 5 or 6 hours; by 8 am the grouse had left the site, and it was safe to leave the hide (without fear of flushing any birds) and return to Kuusamo for a much needed breakfast. The hide faces the rising sun and can offer some good opportunities for back-lit photography.
Black Grouse
Male Capercaillie start to lek in the late evening, so the hides need to be entered in the early evening and an overnight stay as the Capercaillie lek all night only stopping briefly and finally stopping about 6 am. Whilst several Black Grouse display and spar together, Capecaillie male display singularly attracting females. At around 9 pm I heard the Capercaillie "popping" but failed to see him in front of the hide, looking upwards I realised he was calling from in one of the trees in front of the hide. He stayed in the tree until early morning before he began lekking from the ground.
Capercaillie
On 12 May we visited the Bear Hides at Kuusamo Bears. We spent an evening in the hide, overlooking the swamp on the edge of the forest, just a few kilometres from the Russian border. Whilst waiting for the star of the evening, we were able to watch and photography many Wood Sandpipers (at least 17 were present), other waders included Spotted Redshank, Ruff and Common Sandpiper. We'd almost given up hope of any Brown Bear, when a young female emerged from the forest on the far side of the swamp. She stayed an fed for twenty minutes on fish that had been put out, leaving just before 10pm. Well worth the wait!
The atmospheric swamp at Kuusamo Bears
Young female Brown Bear
Wood Sandpiper at Kuusamo Bears
Lakes and Swamps
Finland is full of Lakes - over 188,000 waterbodies that are over 500m sq - so we were spoilt for choice about which ones to visit. We made several visits to Kuusamojärvi and Toranki, next to Kuusamo. Both of these, and several other lakes, have viewing towers, giving fantastic panoramic views over the water bodies.
Kuusamojarvi and viewing towers
The lakes held breeding wildfowl, mainly Goldeneye and Goosander, with Red-necked Grebe, Black-throated Diver, Wood Sandpiper and Greenshanks. The non-native Muskrat were also seen on most visits to the lakes.
Around halfway through our stay Little Gulls began to appear and commence nesting on Kuusamojarvi, around 40 pairs were present before we left, nesting amongst the Black-headed Gulls and Common Terns.
The reedbeds and woodlands surrounding the lakes were also very productive, with breeding Reed Buntings, Fieldfares, Redwings, Siskins, Redstarts and Pied Flycatchers. The latter two species making use of the many nesting boxes in the woods.
The Forests
The forests at Iivara, Oulanka and Konntainen offered similiar woodland species to those seen around Kuusamo, with the addition of Siberian Jays, Bullfinches (Northern form), Bramblings, Siskins and Willow Tit. We did hear Red-flanked Bluetail at Konntainen, but it failed to reveal itself. At the layby at Konntainen, several feeders are kept stocked, providing excellent photographic opportunities for many species and Red Squirrel. Rustic Buntings also sang from within the forests and Mountain Hares were seen along the forest tracks and the forest edges.
Swamp and Forest Habitats
Comments